Conan Exiles (Xbox One) Game Preview

I'm sure many people's first knowledge of Conan Exiles was that it allowed nudity, and even had a character creation slider to set size.  Once I sat down to play the game preview of the Xbox One version, I realized I didn't even know what type of game it was.  Needless to say, I was surprised to find out it's an open world survival game.

I tried my first run, carefully setting up my character and reading stuff.  I didn't have much time then, so I had to quit out and hope that it had saved.  I tried to return later, but the single player needs an internet connection.  Sigh.  After finally getting it to work again, I found it had saved my stuff.  However, it also seemed to stop giving me experience.  I also quickly learned that the game tells you nothing.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, there is a huge area between too many tutorials and not enough.  Conan Exiles is, at the moment, firmly in the "not enough".  I don't think it tells you how to do anything other than the button prompt to read stuff.  This wouldn't be as big of an issue, but you kind of need to know a lot of stuff in a survival game.  I need SOMETHING to go on here.  What are these meters?  What should I actually do?  How do I build stuff?  I don't really have time to figure it out if doing so makes me starve or dehydrate.

I eventually figured out a few things I could harvest, and that I could eat bugs for a minuscule food boost.  I also ran into a lake...and monsters.  I somehow won my first fight.  Then I lost my second.  The game respawned me...somewhere.  There is no map or minimap that I could find.  Since you asked, yes, that IS a bad decision.  Even so, I could only craft five things, and was unsure what to do.

So, I started over with a new character.  Unfortunately, it seems you can only have one offline character, and that co-op is only online.  Hopefully that changes in the full release.  Like 7 Days to Die, I'd love to play it offline and couch co-op with my wife.

Even so, I was finally gaining experience, and had some ideas of what to do.  Still annoyed about the lack of map, though.  When I leveled up, I could increase a stat!  I don't know what each stat does, though, since as I might have already mentioned, the game doesn't tell you things.  You also use level up points to purchase crafting recipes.  This is kind of neat.  Plus, I finally found how to get more than five things to craft!

Sorting through all of the things you can craft is a pain, though.  Once you do find what you want, or think you want, you then have to have enough stuff to actually make it.  Even basic things seem to take a lot of stuff to actually make.  So, I hope you grabbed a ton of stuff while on your way, since no map will make it harder to find your way back.  Don't grab too much and become encumbered.  Also remember to make a bed roll!

Finding a place to put it was a bit of a chore, too.  I build a few walls, a door, and a foundation to put it on.  Good thing, since you actually need a foundation to attach the walls to.  The problem was getting them to play nice.  The foundation pieces, walls and ceilings didn't always attach to each other.  I'm not sure why.  So, my "house" has a hole at the top.  The interface to build and actually put them down was kind of a mess, too.  In fact, most of the UI in general wasn't that good.

Combat isn't much better.  You have to be pretty precise with your aim, which is just as annoying in combat as it is for mining and gathering.  Well, humans have that problem, not the AI.  When hit, it moves your aim to the side, so you have to re-adjust to actually hit the next blow.  I don't think that happens to your enemies when you hit them.  You seem reasonably sturdy, as it took several hits to down me.  Unfortunately, the same applies to your foes.  That's only really annoying when attacking the animals for their skins, as it's a chore to chase after them after each attack.

So what things am I hoping they fix or add?  Well, a few optional tutorials, and some in game info to start.  I'd really like a mini-map, or a compass so I can figure out where to go.  No, I don't want to have to craft them, just give me something basic so I can find stuff.  It would be nice to have single player not need online, and have multiple save slots for multiple worlds.  If at all possible, I'd like couch co-op instead of online only.  Other similar games have it, so I would think it's possible.

If you are a fan of Dark Souls-like difficulty and like survival games, then boy do I have the game for you!  For everyone but those ten people, I'd say wait and see how the game develops closer to launch and see if it's been improved before forking over your money.  Conan Exiles is definitely a game preview, as it's not ready to be released, but does have a lot of potential.


The Good:
Fans of survival, crafting and hard difficulty will get some fun out of it.  Plus, the music is very reminiscent of Conan.

The Bad:
The game offers no help, tutorials, or information to get you started.

The SaHD:
Once it's more complete, I'll play with the server options, as it looks like there's some nice settings there.

(Review code for Conan Exiles was provided by the publisher)

Yakuza 5 (PS3) Review

My first few hours spend with Yakuza 5 were all spent installing the game on my PS3.  Seriously.  The game clocks in at over 22 Gigs, which sadly means you need twice that to install.  I put in my review code and after 4+ hours of downloading and another to install, I was finally ready to start the game.  However, that time is not nearly as much as you will spend playing the game, even if you don't do much of the extra stuff.

First off, the game looks really good, and I can't wait to see the PS4 Yakuza game coming later this year.  The character models and environments are really detailed.  This is important because the focus of the game is on the characters.  As mentioned in my early impressions post, Yakuza 5 is not quite the genre I thought it was.  It is much more focused on story and character interactions, weaving the protagonists throughout their role in the world.  The story takes itself seriously and there is a lot of dialogue and cut scenes, with many of them voiced.  There are times where you can wander around and have free will, and there are times when you have to do very specific things.  If the story and characters weren't as interesting as they are, that kind of thing could backfire.

In many ways, Yakuza 5 is actually like an action-RPG.  You walk around to different places, which can take awhile if you are going at the speed of people.  Running is possible, but it easily attracts attention from unsavory people that will then start a fight with you.  It's really similar to random encounters, hence my comparison to RPGs.  You can grab side quests, too.  Fights, though, are definitely not like RPGs, and much more like a 3D brawler.

To me, combat is the star of the game.  It is fun and brutal.  As you punch, kick and throw your opponents, you build up a Heat gauge that allows you to do special moves.  These moves do a lot of damage, but more importantly, look so savage.  Some have you grate an opponent's face on the ground or powerbomb him onto his neck.  There are even situational ones depending on where you are during battle.  For example, Kiryu can throw an opponent into the river.  I laugh every time I see that one.  Since you will end up doing a lot of fights in the game, I'm glad the combat is fluid and fun.  It's like watching a wrestling match with great spots.  Plus, the final hit on the final guy has the dramatic camera angle and slow motion, adding some extra flair to battles.

You can equip weapons that you have, or even pick up several things in the environment to use.  Picking up a bicycle and beating someone's butt is effective and funny.  Weapons have a durability, and weapons picked up off the ground will disappear when the durability runs out.  If you have a weapon equipped, it will not disappear, so you can pay to have it repaired at a shop.  Each weapon type (there are more than I would have thought) has its own experience and level.  The levels will increase damage, up the durability or other functions.  It's worth using them when you can, especially against the large groups or powerful bosses that you sometimes face.  Fights weren't too hard, which I liked, but admittedly I had the game on easy.  Even so, you can't just mash against stronger opponents, so knowing what you are doing is crucial to success.

Besides fighting and the involved and intertwining stories, there are a lot of extra things to do.  First off, Kiryu is assuming life as a taxi driver, so you get to do that if you want.  There's also races he can do, which are surprisingly fun and not too hard.  There's a ramen cooking mini-game, dates with hostess club girls, rhythm-based mini-games for singing and dancing, even Virtua Fighter 2 and some songs in Taiko Drum Master.  You can also pick up trash or keys while walking around for some extra items.  It's pretty crazy the stuff you can do with the different characters.  It's almost too much and too random, but since most of it isn't necessary or blends in with the story, it's just right.

There are five different characters you play throughout the story at various times.  The story flows pretty well, although I admit it would have been fun to be able to jump between the stories instead of having to do them in a set order.  While I was able to follow most of the story, there are definitely a few parts I had trouble keeping straight.  Even if you haven't played any other entry, the story is pretty enjoyable, but I'm sure you get more out of it if you have played more Yakuza games.  Each full chapter can last 15+ hours if you do a lot of the side quests and other extras.  The cut scenes can be re-watched from the main menu if you ever want to see something again without the giant time commitment.

Yakuza 5 is really fun.  I had not played any other entry in the series, but I want to now.  The story and characters are well fleshed out, interesting and enjoyable.  Combat is a lot of fun.  It is easy to do and has a lot of variety of finishing moves and weapons.  The areas you travel in are filled with extra things to do.  Gamers who enjoy action rpgs and/or good story and characters should at least try the game, as it is well worth playing.  In fact, I could see a lot of people enjoying the game, even though it seems very steeped in Japanese and Yakuza culture.

Rebel Galaxy (Xbox One) Review

Rebel Galaxy has headed to home consoles after its recent PC release.  The game gives you a bit of story, then quickly drops you into the action.  There is a little explanation of what to do, but not much.  The game mostly leaves you to your own devices.

I'm ok with a game not holding your hand, but I'd like some information available in the game.  Over and under tutorializing are a frequent problem in games, and Rebel Galaxy is the latter.  The basic buttons are displayed fine on the screen, but figuring out navigation, mining and other things is trial and error.  It has a very old school mentality in that regard.

The best part of the game is just how much freedom they give you.  There is a story, but you don't really have to follow it.  You can run around and fight pirates, get bounty money and do side missions.  If you are more peaceful-minded (or greedy), go mining or become a trader, buying low and selling high.  Want to run afoul of the law?  Then do missions for the pirates and attack traders.  The game does a great job of letting you earn money for upgrades in as many or few ways as you want.

At first, I didn't realize that was the point of the game.  I was trying to do the story missions, and they quickly shot up in difficulty.  I was supposed to do extra stuff to make money, and slowly upgrade my ship and weapons and tackle the story missions as I did so.  It's fine for the game to do that, I just wish I had known earlier.  While you can do many things to earn money, you will likely be doing several of them to get ahead faster.  The side missions are randomized and repeatable, so there is no way to run out.  Plus each station has several each time you visit.  In fact, each new game randomizes the galaxy names and layouts.  It's nice that each player will have a lot of unique experiences while playing, or replaying, the game.

While traveling from station to station and job to job, you will be watching your ship fly.  A lot.  It's not the most interesting thing, but you do have to pay attention.  Fights can come at almost any point, so you should be ready for combat.  The bigger threat of not paying attention is flying too close to a planet or moon, and dying.  There are things to discover floating around, so there is stuff out there.  The game almost feels too realistic, since most times you are driving/flying somewhere, there isn't too much interesting going on, and the kind of interesting you would encounter is not the kind you want to encounter.

Combat is an important part of the game, since no matter what you will be involved in some fisticuffs.  Even if you are an item runner, you will need to know some fighting to know how to get the heck out of there when trouble comes knocking.  Though it is a vital part of the game, there is little instruction on it, as mentioned in part earlier.  Each ship is outfitted with a broadside weapon.  The number of shots of each (and hence its damage) is determined by the number of ports the ship has.  The same applies to the secondary weapons, although these are sometimes less direct weapons.  You can aim turrets manually, but I only really needed that for mining.  Otherwise, they shoot fine on their own.

There is a flak cannon you can equip to deal with enemy missiles, and deal with them you will.  I didn't realize that you have to fire them yourself, so I thought they were useless.  Turns out I didn't see that there is a button for them, so they are not actually useless.  Unfortunately, they are only useful if you aren't going too fast and try to vaguely aim them at the missiles, but they do work.  You do need some way to deal with enemy artillery, since as the game progresses, large enemy ship have a ton of missiles and torpedoes that they will not hesitate to shoot at you.  A lot.

Fights can vary in difficulty pretty wildly.  Since there are no levels of enemies, it can be hard to tell if you are capable of taking out some foes until midway through the fight.  Even if a job is labelled as easier doesn't necessarily mean it is.  Once you go through a few systems, the fights become much harder.  Enemies are numerous and outfitted with arms that eat through your shields and hull.  While you can hire a mercenary, two ships versus ten requires more power or good tactics.  Unless you are really good at destroying enemies, you will likely have to run a lot of jobs to build up money to go and buy better weapons and armor to withstand each new area.

As our moon has its dark side, and there are things I don't like in Rebel Galaxy.  More than there should be.  First off, you can't resize the screen, so the edges are cut off on my TV.  Second, the game starts off pretty loud, and I'm really not a fan of the music choices.  It isn't terrible, but it's some space western-y tunes that remind me of Firefly.  I can and do turn down the music and turn off the vibration, but it has to wait until I actually load up my game to do so.  Plus, with the vibration set to 0%, I have to go in again and change it up then back to get it to recognize that it is supposed to be off any time I boot up the game.  They might be minor, but they do get annoying.

There are still a few other problems I have with the game.  The game saves whenever you leave a station.  It only tells you this if you haven't saved in a while.  There is no on-screen indicator to know that you are saving or have saved.  While you can have multiple games, each has its own solitary save file.  That I can deal with, even if I don't like it.  The freedom the game gives has its downside too.  If you aren't committed to choosing a path or pushing yourself to do things, the game can be very aimless, like all open world/sandbox games.  While the problems aren't a huge deal, they are mostly ones that could easily be fixed.  Again, these problems may be bigger or smaller to you based off your own gaming preferences.

Rebel Galaxy can be very fun.  It might look and sound boring, since between fights there is a lot of flying through space and just staring at the screen.  When you actually play it, it is oddly engaging and easy to get caught up in.  It's one of those games you can sit down and start playing, then look up at the clock and realize you've been playing it for hours.  There are a fair amount of small issues that add up to make Rebel Galaxy good instead of great.  If the game sounds or looks at all interesting to you, definitely try it out for a few hours.